Even though the stock market may have touched its peak before the end of the current year, it has not been able to give investors as much return as was expected. There was a lot of ups and downs in the stock market due to the impact of tariffs, fall in the rupee and selling by foreign investors. On the other hand, the prices of gold and silver have broken decades old records in terms of giving returns. Where gold prices have given a return of 71 percent to investors in the futures market. On the other hand, silver has earned 121 percent. We may see further increase by the end of the year. Now the biggest question is that which can give better returns in the year 2026 between gold, silver and stock market. A big prediction has been made in this regard by the country's leading brokerage firm Kotak Securities. Let us also tell you what has been said by the firm…

Who can create an environment for the stock market?

1. The Indian stock market had fallen 17 percent from its peak in September 2024, but the Nifty 50 achieved a new all-time high by the end of 2025.
2. Shares of large-cap companies showed the biggest gains, while mid-cap and small-caps lagged behind.
3. Automobile, bank and metal sectors performed well, while IT and FMCG sectors remained weak.
4. Domestic investors kept the market under control despite continuous FPI (foreign portfolio investment) selling, thereby strengthening confidence in the Indian equity market.
5. IPO and other primary market activities remained strong, which clearly reflected the enthusiasm of investors and the resilience of the Indian market.

How can Nifty be?

1. Nifty's earnings estimates have become stronger. It is expected that Nifty's profit will increase by 17.6 percent in FY 27 and 14.8 percent in FY 28.
2. Base Case: Nifty is expected to reach 29,120 by December 2026. Assuming that the estimated EPS of FY28 is Rs 1,456, the P/E ratio of Nifty will be 20.0.
3. Bull Case and Bear Case: Nifty's target can go up to 32,032. In case of a downward trend, Nifty may reach 26,208.
4. Hot sectors for the year 2026: BFSI (Banking and Financial Services), Technology, Healthcare and Hospitality.

The shine of gold and silver will remain intact

1. Gold performed strongly in 2025, its price increased by more than 55 percent and crossed $ 4,000 an ounce. The reason for this was global uncertainty, geo-political tension and huge purchases by central banks.
2. In India, i.e. at the domestic level, the prices of gold in the futures market have increased by about 71 percent so far. In which the effect of weakening of rupee was also included.
3. This year, silver has done better than gold, and an increase of 121 percent has been seen in the futures market. This was due to safe-haven demand, supply shortage, and structural issues, although challenges related to industrial taxes remained.
4. Crude oil prices fell by 19 percent because supply was higher and the impact of geo-political events reduced. This created an atmosphere of caution in the oil market for 2026.
5. Base metals like copper and aluminum remained strong as rising demand from electrification, supply shortage and structural tightness supported them, although prices continued to remain volatile.

What do experts say?

Shripal Shah, MD & CEO of Kotak Securities, said that India remains a strong center of growth amidst global challenges. Our view on equities is positive as corporate earnings are expected to be good and the policy environment is also supportive. Gold will retain its shine as a safe investment option in 2026. With the increasing participation of young investors, the market will strengthen further and new opportunities for wealth creation will arise. On the industry front, he further said that as per the latest SEBI survey, 63 per cent of households are aware of at least one securities market product, but only 9.5 per cent of households actually invest. This means that there is still a huge untapped potential in India's equity market. Brokerage firms should come forward and make investing easy and accessible to all.